Chain Reaction

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Chain Reaction

Would you like to go on a cruise? This short story is set on a cruise ship and has a very funny ending.

Instructions

Read the story and do the exercises.

34

Preparation

Chain Reaction

by Louise Cooper

Everyone was enjoying the cruise. The weather was warm and sunny, the sea was calm, and the passengers hadn't complained about anything, which was unusual. Even the chief engineer wasn't bad-tempered, which was very unusual.

Until, one morning, the ship suddenly stopped.

'What's going on?' roared the captain from the bridge. The jolt had spilled his morning coffee all over his uniform.

The chief engineer hastily shut down the engines (which did make him bad-tempered), and the trouble was investigated. The propeller was snagged, all right. An enormous chain was wrapped around it, and if the engineer had not acted so quickly the blades would have been mashed beyond repair.

'What idiot left a thundering great chain drifting around in the sea?' the captain growled.

'Don't know, sir,' the third mate said again, gloomily. 'But it's going to take some clearing.'

The captain sighed and looked around. It could have been worse, he supposed. The sea was dotted with small islands fringed by white beaches on which waves broke gently. The sun shone from a cloudless sky. If the purser organised a few deck games, then with any luck the crew could free the propeller before the passengers started grumbling.

They set to work, and by lunchtime they had untangled the propeller. But the captain was curious. The freed chain disappeared down into the sea, with no end in sight. Who on earth had put it there, and why? He wanted to find out, and another hour wouldn’t hurt.

'Haul it in,' he ordered the second mate (the third mate was off duty by now). 'Let's find out if it's attached to anything. If it isn't, I'll complain to the local coastguards—it's a hazard to shipping!'

The crew started to heave the chain aboard. It came easily enough, but there was a lot of it. Half an hour passed, and they were still hauling. Then suddenly the chain became harder to winch in.

'I think we're nearly there, sir!' the second mate panted.

The captain did not reply. He was staring at the nearest island. Strange… the beach looked much bigger than before. And the low cliffs weren't low any more, but seemed to have grown.'Sir!' bawled the second mate. 'Come and look at this!' The captain hurried to the winch. The crew had reached the end of the chain. Attached to it, bumping and clanging against the ship's side as it was heaved up, was a circular object about five metres across. The captain frowned. It reminded him of something. In fact he had a thing just like it, though much, much smaller, in the bath in his private cabin. It was…

A plug?

He looked at the islands again. The beaches were getting bigger. The cliffs were getting higher. As if the sea level was dropping…

'Oops…' said the captain.

This story was selected as part of the BritLit project. To find out more about BritLit visit our TeachingEnglish site.

Wow! Awesome story! I'd love to go on a cruise ship, but I suffer from travel sickness. And many people say sometimes ships can be annoying because they're very slow. But I really want to go on one just to admire the architecture!

Ah ha, a good imaginary story! I enjoyed it, thank you.
☆♫ ٩( ´ᆺ｀)۶♫ ★
I've been on a cruise but frequent waves made me terribly sick! I really wanted to jump out of the cruise.... and swim with fish!!

hello everyone
it's a great story with a lot of exciting points but I'd like to know the meaning of
" mashed beyond repair"
(anyone can answer. it's not just for britishcouncil team i love to read the other opinions and to ensure the right answer from the british council team )
thanks a bundle

Hi ahmedonly!
I'm glad you like the story. OK, so I'm not going to tell you exactly what "mashed beyond repair" means yet. But I'll give you a clue - do you know what mashed potato is? It's a very popular dish in Britain. What do we do to potatoes when we make it?
I'm interested to hear everyone's interpretations of this phrase. Thanks for asking!

Yes, I have been on a cruise ship in Tyrkey last year. I was enjoying all the time, I took some lovely photos and I had an excellent time with my friends. The weather was windy and cold and there wasn't any turkish tea so we were cold, but we were laughing all the time. I want to go on that cruise again, in the same place, with the same people.

Yes, I was, and it was really a great experience, which I'll never forget. It was in Spain, which is really the best place for cruise. The ship was so beautiful, with many facilities, and the stuff was really agreeable. I also met lovely and kind people, and I'm still in touch with some of them. I'd like to repeat that experience as soon as possible.

I liked this story very much.The plot is fantastic and keeps you in suspense to the end. I've been on cruise in Turkey. I enjoyed it. It lasted for five days. But I was little and I don't remember details. I think in summer we will go on cruise again.

Hi Beauty2705,
When the people on the boat pull the chain up from the bottom of the sea, they see that there's a plug on the end! A plug is the plastic thing you put in the sink to keep the water in. (Type 'sink plug' into Google images to see one!) When the plug is pulled out of the sea, the sea water disappears. It's like the sea was a giant sink full of water. Do you understand it now?
Jo (LearnEnglish Teens Team)

No Greek is not like Spanish.They are different))
As for me,this language is very easy but for my friends very difficult.They say that the Greek letters as hieroglyphs)It depends on the person who wants to learn this language and from his Mother Language.
From what country you are?(Flower94)

It is fun story)
I have been on a cruise ship.It is was in Cyprus!It was great!!!We traveled to the Greek islands and the capital of Greece Athens.I still have great memories of this cruise!!!After this I even start to learn Greek)
So it is was very useful trip!)